Blame game is Co-op’s only legacy
The initial and resounding conclusion so far from the public hearings in the probe investigating the collapse of the Co-op bank is that incompetent people were chosen to run it, driven by political interference.
This is probably why the communist party AKEL did not want the bank to close in order to cover up the incompetence of its appointees while ruling DISY sought to appoint yet more inept individuals as part of its favours-for-jobs arrangement.
The mandate of the three-man enquiry team is to hear everyone’s view and then conclude if any crime took place that led to the downfall of the bank.
However, the panel does not have the authority to take legal action, which is up to the Attorney General to decide if he sees there are reasonable grounds to justify prosecution based on the testimonies given. But stupidity and incompetence are not a punishable crime.
Most of the testimonies heard so far have been an elaborate whinge by bankers who failed to act, kicked the can down the road and deflected the blame on someone else, in order to cover their shortfalls. All the Co-op board members called to testify have not explained why they did not take further action or go public over their discontent when they resigned.
With the exception of just one or two testimonies so far, none of the witnesses have said how they challenged the bank’s mismanagement or blew the whistle to government officials when they realised something was badly wrong. Like most people in such toxic, crony-infested environs they were hoping not to get found out while they were still picking up the salary cheque.
None of them criticised the long-tolerated system and network with which loans were dished out without any securities, simply because the local Coops were influenced by political arm-twisting.
Some of the ‘holier than thou’ accusations even date back to a string of Central Bank governors for not taking action when it was needed.
At the same time, we have not heard from the Central Bank on how these board members were vetted and on what banking merit their appointments were granted. By the sounds of it, male-dominated Co-op boards lacked the required expertise and banking experience.
On the other hand, trying to get a board seat in a private sector bank nowadays goes through as much scrutiny as a historian trying to access the legendary and secretive Vatican Archives.
Hopefully, the probe will continue to allow witnesses to come forward, but perhaps it should also digress from its wide remit and question the motive behind each testimony. It should even go as far as to ask the golden question regarding the bad loans: “If not you, then who?”